Far from the hundreds of pages of medical records provided to the McCain press corps for several hours, Barack Obama’s campaign released a note from his doctor that deemed him in “excellent health.”

The 46-year-old works out regularly, recently quit smoking, and appears to take on a grueling schedule with relative ease - and lest we forget, Obama was dubbed one of the nation’s 25 fittest guys this month according to Men’s Fitness magazine.

Last week when McCain released his medical records, Obama was asked if the elder candidate’s age will be a factor in this election. “He is campaigning actively all across the country. His doctors have given him a clean bill of health - I don’t think it should be an issue in the campaign,” Obama told reporters.

Read the doctor’s note after the jump.

(more…)

According to Men’s Fitness magazine (out May 19th), Barack Obama is not just the fittest politician in the race for the presidency - he’s one of the nation’s 25 fittest guys.

So you don’t have to wait till next week - here’s the magazine’s reasoning:

“It takes a certain stamina to endure months of 16-hour days in pursuit of the land’s highest office. Obama is not the first politician dedicated to fitness, but the Illinois senator starts every day with a morning workout, whether it’s machines at the hotel gym or a brisk 45-minute run. He’s also quit smoking. Obama can be excused for enjoying the occasional state-fair corn dog because he mostly stays away from fatty foods. He’s also, as we’ve seen, a bit of a baller. Nicknamed “Barry O’Bomber” for his jump shot, the former high school hoopster now releases stress during pickup games—including one on every primary day. “He’s wiry-looking but actually pretty strong,” former Duke player and Obama staffer Reggie Love has said. “And he hates losing.He plays hard.” Now that we know.”

Obama on the move in Indiana

Nearly one week since he was released from a St. Louis hospital, Rudy Giuliani’s doctor issued a statement Wednesday declaring that the candidate is “in very good health” and all tests conducted last week came back normal. Questions about his health have been hounding Giuliani since returning to the trail Saturday. Now it’s back to convincing the pundits to give his political health a more positive prognosis….

STATEMENT:

“I have been Rudy Giuliani’s personal physician for more than seven years. I was informed late Wednesday evening that Mr. Giuliani was suffering from a significant headache and fatigue. These symptoms can be described as possibly “flu-like.” As Mr. Giuliani’s personal physician, I stayed in contact with the doctors at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis throughout the course of the evening. Because of the significant headache, it was important to have as much information as possible and err on the side of caution.

Mr. Giuliani underwent the following tests at Barnes-Jewish Hospital: CT-MRI of the brain, ultrasound of the carotid arteries, and spinal fluid evaluation. These tests all came back normal. Furthermore, a PSA taken within the past month was negligible or undetectable, and routine laboratory tests were normal. Upon returning to New York City, Mr. Giuliani came to me for an examination and a further test, a transesophageal echocardiogram, which was normal. I confirmed there was no change in his health status. Mr. Giuliani was not prescribed any medication and I recommended that he lighten his schedule only for a few days. It is my medical opinion that Rudy Giuliani is in very good health.”

–Valentin Fuster, M.D., PH.D. (Professor of Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine.)

St. Louis, MO - Rudy Giuliani Communications Director Katie Levinson released the following statement early Thursday morning:

“Earlier today, Mayor Giuliani experienced flu-like symptoms campaigning in Missouri. The symptoms worsened as the day wore on and shortly after taking off from Chesterfield, Missouri for New York the Mayor became uncomfortable enough that our plane returned to the airport in Chesterfield. To be on the safe side, the Mayor consulted with his personal physician in New York and made the decision to go to the Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis for routine tests. The Mayor will spend the night in St. Louis and we will provide another update in the morning.”

UPDATE—5:40am Eastern Time

Giuliani spokeswoman, Maria Comella:

“After  precautionary tests the doctors found nothing of concern at this time and Rudy will be going back to New York  later today.     He is in high spirits and is grateful to the doctors and nurses who checked him out.”